Global economic outlook improves, unemployment not expected to drop

Globally, the economic outlook is improving, but in many regions, growth rates remain below the level needed for rapid progress to achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals, a report by the International Labour Organization (ILO) said Monday.

"Over 201 million workers worldwide are currently unemployed, an increase of 3.4 million compared to 2016. The global unemployment rate stands at 5.8 percent, and is not expected to drop any time soon," said the report.

It noted that the global and regional environment for firms has been constantly evolving since 2008.

"The impacts of lower economic growth and trade on global supply chains and the resultant concerns regarding job quantity and job quality are high on the agendas of many countries," said the report.

Other important trends such as technological changes and innovation are shaping the world of work in new and different ways and have complicated the post-2008 crisis environment.

The report, titled the World Employment and Social Outlook 2017, examines how firms -- as the engine of job creation -- have been affected by and responded to these developments.

The report analyzes, in particular, the implications of these developments on company performance and job dynamics.

It considers how policies to support enterprises and the environment in which they operate could help to create more and better jobs and, in turn, achieve inclusive and sustainable growth.

It says that despite some progress made over the past decades, nearly 780 million workers in emerging and developing countries (corresponding to almost every third worker) are still living in conditions of extreme or moderate poverty.

The report says that more than 1.4 billion workers world over are in vulnerable employment, and the number increases by around 11 million each year.

"This situation poses significant challenges, as these workers are less likely to have secure jobs with regular incomes and access to social protection," said the report, noting that in future the world hence still faces significant decent work deficits.